The Chamber
by SaintRidley
Summary: The creation of the basilisk and the final steps in the creation of the Chamber of Secrets. I don't own the characters.


_The Chamber_

It was time. Endless hours of preparation, countless nights spent in construction. All of it had been leading up to this, to the final moments before all could be called done. The others would not understand; they never did understand him. He was different, and he knew it.

He mounted his broom and rode it up through the passageways, watching the water that cascaded down around him fall into immeasurable depths below. Soon, though, darkness lifted and he emerged in the place that he chose to conceal everything. With a wave of his wand he sealed the entrance forever.

He took his knife and carved an intricate little design just under the tap, a design so reminiscent of his monogram that it would be bound by the same charm. All of his monograms had been crafted to respond to the same stimulus, the same word, in the same language. All that was left was to create the response to the stimulus, to ensure that the ground would open up beneath whosoever spoke the password.

He flicked his wand like a conductor's baton, muttering in a strange, hissing tongue as he went. He weaved the spell, the same spell he had used on the patch of wall in the dungeons to create a place for his students to reside in. The spell completed, he knelt to the tap and concentrated hard. "_Open_."

The ground opened wide, and the gaping hole from which he had emerged reappeared in front of him. He smiled and turned away. The others were under the impression that he was fixing the plumbing, and that was the way things would remain. "_Close_."

He swept out of the loo, shrinking his broomstick and sliding it into a pocket. He strode down toward the kitchens, admiring the stonework along the way. With more torches on the walls, the corridors upstairs were more alive, more cheerful. He tickled the pear in the portrait and waited for the opening to the kitchens to be revealed.

"You, elf," he said, looking down at the multitude of elves that practically swarmed him, hoping to possibly get him some food or drink. "Get me a chicken's egg. Make it a fresh one, not one that has been in storage."

An elf squealed some sort of compliance and scurried off to find such an egg. When it returned, bearing a solitary egg that had just been laid by of the school's chickens; the man took the egg, examined it, and left. He pocketed the egg, casting a light warming charm to keep it fresh, and made his way to the castle's front door.

He took in a breath of the fresh summer air and eyed the lake. It was at the banks of the lake, near the edge of the forest, that he would find what he needed. He walked over, keeping his eyes open as he did so. The centaurs in the forest despised him, and if they knew how close he was to their territory they would not hesitate to attack. Kneeling down, he pointed to the border between the forest and the lake with his wand. "_Accio toad_."

With palm outstretched, he waited patiently. Soon enough the nearest toad would fly out from the wood and it would be his. He needed a toad, and for five minutes he waited thus, anticipating the toad that never came. He would have to borrow from a student, in that case. He returned to the castle and made his way toward the dungeons, to the blank stretch of wall that concealed his students.

Searching his memory for any students of his that owned a toad, he immediately recalled a girl of fourteen. Her unknowing part in this project, in this last defence of the school from the unfriendly horde of Muggles and Mudbloods that would one day assault the very foundations of magic, would be the kind of thing legends are made of. None would believe a young girl to be the unwitting provider of the key to the castle's ultimate defence. None would know that ultimately, she was responsible for the safety of the school.

He pointed his wand down the stairs to the girls' dormitories and repeated himself. "_Accio toad_." He stretched out his hand again and, sure enough, a toad flew through the air to land comfortably in his palm. With that, he marched back to the loo, clutching the toad and checking the egg.

Opening the passage, enlarging the broomstick, and flying down to the chamber below were simple tasks. Making his way inside, into the inner chamber, he marvelled at his handiwork. The stones were carved in a rough approximation of how he imagined himself to appear when he would be an old man. The beard was full and tumbled to the floor while the face seemed reminiscent of a wizened monkey. "_Speak to me, greatest of the Hogwarts Four_."

The great statue of the wall opened its mouth in silent tribute to its creator, and the man pulled the toad and the egg from his robes. He cast a strong warming charm on the egg, as well as a charm that would speed up the development of the embryo inside of it. A Permanent Sticking Charm attached the toad to the egg, and it was not long – only a few hours – before the egg began to wobble, shaking and cracking. The toad's eyes widened in fear and confusion, as it vainly tried to escape the egg beneath it. Soon, though, a large snake emerged from the egg and devoured the toad in one bite.

"_Close your eyes and listen to me. I have created you. You will stay in this school, guarding its denizens from the horde of Mudbloods and Muggles that seek to do harm to our proud traditions,_" he said, explaining to the basilisk."_One day, when the time has come to defend the school, my heir will enter this chamber and call for you. You will obey this heir, and you will be tasked with aiding in the defence of this school. You will bring death to the unworthy, the thieves of our secrets_."

"_Yes, Master. Hunt, rip, tear, kill,_" the great serpent said, its eyes closed as it addressed its creator.

"_You will do so at the direction of my heir. The heir will be the next human to come down here, so when you next feel a human presence in this chamber, you are to close your eyes and obey. If the human does not speak to thee, then be it on his head._"

"_Yes, Master._"

The man smiled as he turned to exit. With the Chamber of Secrets complete there was nothing that would stand in the way of the school's defence. The greatest threat was the Muggle threat, and with his guardian enclosed within the Chamber there would never be reason to fear for the safety of the school. The basilisk would protect and serve the school as a faithful servant to the wishes of its creator.


End file.
